


In The Grey

by VANDARA



Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Gen, Parallel Universes, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-06
Updated: 2017-08-06
Packaged: 2018-12-11 19:11:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11720712
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VANDARA/pseuds/VANDARA
Summary: When Robin gets transported into a parallel universe, one where he still stands by Batmans side, he re-assumes his Red X persona and introduces Red X into the world of crime. As he attempts to find his way back to his universe he garners intrigue from the wrong crowd, enemies from heros, and learns that the world isn't as black and white as he was taught.





	1. Chapter 1

It’s been a couple of weeks since Robin landed in this fake world. It’s not real, it’s not his. The people walking by aren’t real, the kids skipping by holding their parents hands aren’t real, none of them were real. He’s just in another one of Mad Mod’s illusions, albeit, this illusions much more… sane. Lacking a lot of swirls and creepy thingy’s to hypnotize him. Maybe he was already hypnotized?

Can’t rule that one out yet.

During the first week, he was in Jump City, or the fake Jump City seeing as there wasn’t the giant T in the middle of the giant lake (Where it was SUPPOSED to be). Lo and behold, all that was left was a small patch of land. He thought he failed them, failed and survived while they died. It wasn’t until he caught sight of a piece of newspaper. It wasn’t the usual bolded letters boasting about the Titans accomplishments. No speculation as to who we were before we took on our roles. 

It was only him and Batman.

In the picture it was of Batman and the rest of the League standing overly proudly in front of the Hall of Justice, with a young Robin by Batman’s side. Smiling like it was an honor to stand beside the bastard. The date gave away the fact that he wasn’t in the past, so that was one theory scratched off. That left one last solid theory, one that he’s had a personal experience with.

Larry. Or, technically, his counter part was literal proof that parallel dimensions existed. So now that he knew that he was in a parallel dimension that just left two glaringly obvious problems to solve.

The first, avoid the Justice league. From what he gathered, they’re more involved with crime that won’t end in body counts. Not only that but majority of them are accompanied by partners of their own. Which meant they have more eyes and ears he had to avoid, hence why he stuck to Jump City and away from cities protected by any hero. 

The answer to this problem was obvious actually. Assume his previous identity, Red X. As far as he knew, there was no record of a Red X in this universe. That tidbit of information makes his life slightly easier at the moment, considering he won’t have to go through the trouble of recreating a new persona.

Coming back to the problem at hand, it would most likely be difficult to gain the materials to recreate the complicated suit. Which would force him to search for a supply of Xenothium without the help of technology. That itself would take him longer then he would prefer. He would have to steal other items for the suit, starting with the basics.

The second problem, finding a way back to his universe. He would have to steal more tech (Either from Wayne Tech or LexCorp, which he has no problem with), or get help from the Justice League themselves. There’s no doubt in his mind he would have to face them eventually. It was inevitable considering he has no plans on becoming a regular citizen during his stay. He would, however, prolong that meeting as long as he could. He could count the amount of times he’s the League members on one hand and have fingers to spare. 

So it’s obvious that he holds a bit of a grudge against the Leaguers. They never took their partners as seriously as we would have liked, and thought us Titans as some ragtag group of angsty teens. They wanted to shape us in to sidekicks who would come when called, who would stay by their side rather then than help us create our own path.

Batman was the worse, as expected by most. He made sure to run his ideals and training into Robins bones, criticism becoming a common thing in the home life back then. But as soon as he was shot, he was nearly stripped of his role as Robin. Robin was the last essence he had of his mother, and he would be damned if he let someone like Bruce take it away from him. He left that night, and the rest became history.

During his stay in this universe, he managed to find one of Slades old hideouts. The place was abandoned, the gears rusted from time and the computers barely functional. The cobwebs and layers of dust that had covered the area were easy to clean, and eventually the lair resembled the way he remembered it to look. The lair became one of his bases of operation, with less then a handful more through the city and one within Bludhaven.

Once he was done with the spring-cleaning he got started with recreating the suit. The fabric and cape was the easy part, the tech and mask however… That would involve money. If he were to steal too much advanced tech, then that would cause some red flags to be raised in Jump. Which would end with the League to sending someone to investigate, something he would rather avoid. 

So he became a broker for higher. He stole some small/essential tech needed for the larger computers to get them running and got to work. He started with small things, like selling documents from one company to another. He was paid generously and was eventually able to purchase the basic things needed for the suit. The lightweight but resilient cloth was bought from the latest line of tech by LexCorpwhile the mask and voice changer were made by an underhanded engineer for a hefty price. Once he had gotten the basics of his suit down he headed to Gotham, where an auction for a certain unstable core was being sold.


	2. Auction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amidst the fight, two Robin birds meet. One of curiosity and the other with resentment.

The auction was being held in a one of the many mansions owned by an aristocrat who he had worked for briefly. The man let Red in on the private auction and some of the items being sold. Some of them included at least a dozen or so tubes of Xenothium, which is obviously what he’s aiming for. The man told him of some of the masterminds who would be attending, some of whom included Two-Face, Poison Ivy, and Penguin. Red was only slightly hesitant to attend, but knew that the amount of what he needed was too good to pass up.

He pulled up to the spacious driveway before parking his bike with the other cars, making sure the tracker was on. Can’t be too careless in Gotham.

As he made his way up the steps he was greeted by the nervous portly man who had invited him, Robert Lance. From what he remembered of this man in his universe, Lance was one of the only Gotham elites who genuinely cared for major crises’ in Gotham and was an avid supporter of Batman.

This Lance, however, had no problems with using less then ethical ways to get his earnings. He was a short man sporting a beer-gut,dressed in a golden suit with large diamonds on each of his fingers and unnecessary watches on each of his wrists with a receding hairline being worn proudly. This Lance was like any other aristocratic Gothamite, you just have to stroke their egos the right way in order to get on their good side.

Lance let out a false smile; “Thank you for coming Fals, as well as for before.”

Red sighed internally. He wished he didn’t need to go through these useless pleasantries.

“Thank you for having me Mr. Lance. I would like to add that you have picked a very lavish place to hold this event.”

He grinned, “Well of coarse! When one holds an event with people like these, you must go all out.” His chest puffed out as Red let out an amused laugh then gestured towards the door.

“Shall we?”

____________________

Lance leads the way through the crowed as Reds eyes shifted underneath his mask. Surrounding him were obvious Gotham socialites, dressed in lavish attire with masks dazzled with jewels. He later noted the steps they were headed to, which were blocked out by hefty looking men wielding impressive weapons. They stepped aside when Lance waved his hand. They climbed the steps, which led them to where the villainous masterminds were, the balconey.Lance lead him to an empty table near the middle. Once they were seated the auction began. 

It started off with generic Super-Villain-Wannabe starter pack weapons. As the auction dragged on, with the weapons being sold increasing in it’s destructiveness, Red surveyed others on the balcony. Poison Ivy was easy to spot, her signature forest green taking the form of a form-fitting cocktail dress. Not to far from her was Two-face, who was seated at a table with LexLuther. Red noted over a dozen other elite villains, though none spared him a glance. This didn’t bother him, on the contrary, it eased his psyche slightly. This means he could save his debut for another day.

“And for our next item up for grabs, one of the most powerful cores on earth. So powerful and unstable, not even the likes of Bruce Wayne can get his hands on it without dipping into anything shady!” The crowed below filled with laughter, while the some of the villains leaned in anticipation. The auctioneer gestured to the man behind him. The man stepped forward and opened a briefcase. In the briefcase was a dozen tubes of Xenothium, each capable of powering his suit for a couple of months.

“We’ll start the biding at the generous price of $7,000.”

While the people below hesitated, villains above them didn’t. First was the Brain, then LexLuthur. As the bidding soared, Red tilted his mask to Lance, who gave him a wary nod. Red pressed the biding button on the table, indicating he threw in his bid. The auctioneer glanced at the screen in front of him, recognizing his cue.

“And we have a bid for a whopping $583,000! Going once-”

The Auctioneer ignored the other bidders.

“Twice-“

There was an outcry in the crowed of foul play.

“Sold to the pen-name, Fals Om!

“That’s bullshit! I still want to throw in my bid!” The auctioneer fidgeted as the crowed of criminals became restless. Red leaned back and threw a glance at Lance, who had stood nervously.

“I-I believe it’s time to collect your reward” Red straightened up and followed Lance, not taking note of the curious glances that held intrigue in their eyes.

Red found himself in a room with the portly host and a guard who hadthe briefcase. As he was handed the briefcase, Red passed Lance a flash drive. A flash drive that had Lances stolen documents, the content within the document containing the seedy future plans of his company. Lance took the flash drive with a grateful grin while Red carefully installed a tube of Xenothium into his belt, the X’s of his suit lighting up from the core.  
Lance marveled at the suit, “What do you plan to do with the rest of them?”

Red didn’t hesitate with his response, “Make sure no one else steals what’s mine”

Lance hummed in amusement, “I have a proposition. You work for me, and I’ll pay you anyway you like. I get you enough Xenothium to create more advanced weapons, and you help my company grow. I have no doubt that my company will eventually take over Gotham, making names like Bruce Wayne a memory!”

Red allowed the aristocrat to continue with his proposition as he assured the stability of the core in his suit. Once he was sure the man was done he picked the suitcase from the ground before facing Lance.

“As promising as that sounds, I don’t particularly enjoy being indebt towards others.”

Lance let out a grunt of agreement; “Well the proposition is open to you anytime.”

Red X nodded before turning to the door. As he reached for the knob, the building rumbled. The occupants upstairs could be heard scrambling as more tremors were felt. Lance struggled to regain his balance.

“What the hell was that!” Red was silent before letting out a humorless chuckle, internally being filled with dread before saying bitterly,

“The Dynamic Duo strikes again”

____________________

Above them, said Dynamic Duo was hard at work, with Robin taking down the petty thieves who hadn’t fled and Batman going up against some of the villainous elite. Robin had little trouble keeping up with the hoard of criminals that came at him like waves, easily taking them down. Red watched from his perch on the balcony, spectating the intense battle that waged in the once lavish ballroom. He was silently taken aback by the difference between him and the other Robin, feeling slightly disgruntled that he hadn’t sported the green, underwear like bottoms Red had once worn.

The battle between Batman and the villains seemed one-sided, with Batman easily dodging their attempts at defeating him. Red kept his attention on Robin, who was slowly becoming overwhelmed by the hoard, if only slightly. Eventually, Red decided to help his younger counterpart, leaving the briefcase on the balcony before teleporting to the Bird and sending a kick to the thief behind him. Robin sent him a surprised look before getting back to work, realizing the skulled individual was helping.  
Red decided to make this quick and sent out adhesive restraints, immobilizingthem.In no time they were surrounded by fallen and restrained thieves. Robin turned to the masked man.

“Thanks! I totally had them, but I really appreciated the hand.” Red felt his eye twitch slightly. Arrogant litt-

“You should give your mentor a hand kid, looks like he’s having trouble with the baddies.”

Robin scoffed, “No way, he’s Batman!” He turned his head and gestured to said man, “He’s the night, the worlds best detective, he’s awesome!” Robin turned back only to find a blinking X in the place of the individual.

“Goddamit”

____________________

Red chuckled from his place on the balcony as a he heard a yelp, accompanied by a dense red fog. He spared a glance towards Batman, who had just started rounding up the fallen. Memories of the blood, sweat and tears he experienced while being Robin washed over him. He whipped his head away and reached for his briefcase before teleporting back to Jump.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I also have this story posted under the same title on fanfiction.net

Red strolled the streets of Jump in his civvies, consisting of grey sweats, a red hoodie, and his signature sunglasses. He made his way into the familiar pizzeria and sat down at their trademark seat out on the baloney. As he placed his order, he debated his next course of action. He already had Xenothium so that’s one problem solved. Next is finding a lead on traveling to parallel universes, whether by magic or scientific means. He couldn’t exactly go to the JL’s headquarters and just say he needed to find his way back, they would mostly label him insane and throw him into the slammer without question.

That’s how they would react in his universe.

He hacked into the JL’s database, which had the same mainframe as the one in the Batcave, and got info on one of the leaguers he was looking for. Or, in this case, the daughter of a leaguer.Zatanna, who wasn’t even part of a team and had no training outside of magic. Not to mention she’s younger then him. So that’s one option ruled out.  
Next he did some research on LexCorp, the more shady side of it actually. They were working on another weapon against Superman, one that required large amounts of Xenothium. The Xenothium that was supposed to come from the auction. Which he now has on his person.

Whoops.

While researching the shadiness that was LexCorp, he stumbled upon an interesting finding. It wasn’t particularly related to finding his way back, but it’s been the most advanced thing he’s found so far.

Cadmus.

An organization founded by LexLuthor, it’s known as a genetics research laboratory. They were known for their progress with prevention of deformities and their proposal for “Designer Babies”. He wasn’t interested in these details, however. What piqued his interest was the tidbit of information he received from a progress report email from a Dr. Desmond to Luthor. It gave updates on the progress of Project Kr, Dubbilex, and G-Gnomes. An interesting finding, but not particularly related to his cause. But he’s a hero at heart, so why not cause some problems for the bald multi-billionaire?

Red tipped the waitress before leaving the pizzeria and heading back to his downgraded HQ. Time to be a tourist.

 

* * *

 

 

The tour group Red had joined was filled with selfie-obsessed assholes. Damn it, he should have just busted into the lab at night. That would have saved him the trouble of constantly being surrounded by flashes of phone cameras and the constant “Ooo-Ahhhh”’s of the group at every corner. Not only that, but he almost got vomited on. Three times. By the same brat.

Robin gritted his teeth as another onslaught of wails hit his ears, causing them to ring. All the mother did was continue to chatter with another tourist, showing no concern to the baby who’s face started to turn red from it’s constant screams. Red adored kids, when they weren’t being heathens of course. Red edged towards the baby and glared at her. She paused for a moment before resuming her wails, this time increasing in volume.

Damn babies.

The group stopped as the guide turned to us, “And that wraps up our tour! Any questions before we reach our next destination?”

Several people raised their hands.

“None? Okay! I hope you enjoyed the tour and see yourselves to the-“

“Wait!” The group turned to a woman who looked to be the definition of a tourist, floral shirt and camera in hand.

“What about that room,” she motioned towards a closed off section of the building “we’ve been in every room except that one.”

The guide instantly fidgeted with her hands, her eyes shifting left and right, “That section is where they do the experimentations. They are currently working on a new idea that was brought forth. Dr. Desmon-“

“Does not appreciate giving away surprises. Thank you Sarah, but the tour has ended. No further questions.” The scientist sent a pointed look towards said guide, who looked away dejectedly.

“My names Amy…”

“Sarah”

“A-and that concludes the tour, now please leave!” The group was non-to-subtly kicked out. Red sighed as the disgruntled group headed to the next sight. That tour was obviously showing what Luthor wanted the public to see. What the hell did he expect to find on the tour?

Red walked a couple blocks away before ducking into an alley, expertly shedding his civvies and slipping on the mask, falling into his shady alter ego. He climbed to the rooftops and jumped back to Cadmus, deciding his next course of action. He obviously can’t just waltz in in his civvies and question them about their darker intentions of cloning, Project Kr, and their need for mass amounts of Xenothium.  
Had he chosen that route, not only would Batman wring his neck, but even the Joker would express his disappointment.

So that’s one idiotic idea thrown out the window.

Red grimaced as he recalled a... technique that Batman had taught him. It was one of the most cliché, by the book method, one of the first infiltration methods. It was also his least favorite. Air vents. Cramped air vents covered in dust, either to small to turn or to hot to touch, and one of the reasons he no longer has fingerprints. Batman gave him an earful for accidentally burning them off. Red walked to one of the air vents on the roof and popped off the cover, reveling dust covered vents that he would barely fit into. The thick layers of dust already clinging to his suit.He grimaced before letting out a breath, crawling into the small opening.

Luthor better be worth it.

 

* * *

 

Batman was in his Batcave, as Dick had dubbed it, while said boy went off to hack into the Justice League computer in order to find out more on the newest person he had encountered, FalsOm. Once they had finished rounding the villains, Dick had gone on about the new face in Gotham, when they had gone over the camera feed of the auction they found out, to their dread, the skulled individual had been the one to purchase the mass amounts of Xenothium. With that much Xenothium, the individual could easily wipe out a city.

Batman had interviewed Lance, who was a stuttering mess in front of the Dark Knight. When questioned about the skulled villain, Lance blubbered on about hearing of the person from another aristocrat. Lance had never encountered him before the auction, only knowing that the man was a broker for hire and goes by the pen name, FalsOm. The information was only slightly useful, giving a very, very, very vague outline on the broker. Knowing that Fals Om is Romanian for “False Being”, we knew that he spoke some Romanian. Or was at least familiar with the language. As Batman said, very vague outline.

He relayed his findings on Fals Om to the other League members, ordering them to keep an eye out for any Xenothium being stolen/ shipped off or an individual clad in black with a red X and a skull mask. So far the feedback has been close to silent, no sightings being seen anywhere other then the auction. It seemed that Fals was good at covering his tracks both in the real world and in the deep web.

Bruce pulled off his cowl and rubbed the tiredness from his face, dragging his hand into his hair with a sigh. Dick has been restless since the encounter, keeping himself firmly on his corner of the cave hunched over and fingers moving rapidly across the keys. The obsessions gotten to the point of him losing two days of sleep and eating to a bare minimum; habits Alfred blamed Bruce for. Bruce was lenient for the first couple hours, but even Bruce knew when intense research has turned into an obsession. Bruce swiveled his chair and walked to Dicks own corner of the cave. Where his corner was usually impeccably neat and clean, it was littered with wrappers and bottles, Dicks form hunched over as the sounds of rapid typing was constant. Bruce placed his hand on his shoulder.

“You need to rest.”

“Hmm.”

“Dick, it’s been two days.”

“…”

Batman suppressed his sighs of exasperation. This is probably how Alfred feels when he does the same.

“Richard.”

Dicks fingers froze over the board. Bruce spun Dicks chair to face him, crouching in order to be eye-to-eye with his ward. Dick remained still under his gaze, twitches being the only indication of his nerves. Bruce bit back a fond smile, finding Dicks ‘Hand-in-Jar’ expression slightly adorable.

“You haven’t eaten a proper meal since the incident.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“You haven’t slept since.”

“I’m not tired.”

Bruce narrowed his eyes, Robin fidgeted, and Alfred smiled at the familiar scene. Dick stilled his fidgeting as his guardian leaned in slightly and sniffed him before pulling a face.

“You also smell like you haven’t showered since the incident.”

“…..I-I think I’ve been a little obsessed.” Dick mumbled.

“I think so too.”

“As do I, Master Richard.” Dick winced at the Butlers agreement, knowing that was when he messed up.

“I can’t help it, it’s a new villain in Gotham! A really cool, awesome looking villain!”

Bruce raised a brow; “He gassed you while you were gloating about me.”

Dick grinned wistfully,“And it was glorious.”

Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose as his ward continued to gush, feeling a slight wave of jealousy at the praises being dished out.

“He was so cool with how he utilized the Xenothium into the suit, I really hope we see him again. He didn’t even look exhausted when he took down those thugs, that was so cool!”

Bruce’s brow twitched, “Was it?”

Robin rapidly nodded “The coolest! He could be, like, my official arch-nemesis!”

“Go to bed.”

Robin gawked. “W-wha-“

“Now.”

“B-but I have to shower!”

“You should have done that two days ago”

“Bruce!”

Said man gave a stern glare to the boy. Dicks shoulders slumped before lifting his arm, taking a quick sniff. He ripped his nose away with a grimace. He really did smell. He gave Bruce a sheepish look.

“S-sorry. I’ll go to bed…” Dick yawned as his fatigue finally slammed into him full force. Bruce let a fond look slip while ruffling the slightly greasy hair of his ward. Dick slowly rose from his chair before sluggishly making his way out if the cave. He turned his head to look at Bruce.

“Night Bruce.”

“Goodnight Dick”

“I really hope we run into that guy again, he was the coolest.” He stretched again before leaving. Letting out a grunt, Bruce made his way back to his chair to, as the other heroes would put it, brood.

“Don’t pout Master Bruce, I’m sure Master Richard believes you are ‘Cool’ as well”

“I am not pouting, Alfred”

Alfred resisted a snort before giving a mock bow. “Of course, Master Bruce. Am I not to believe that you will be giving slight upgrades to the suit all night as well?”

“…”

“I shall prepare dinner and bring it down, Master Bruce.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and critique is always welcomed


End file.
